Seasonal Allergies and Chinese Medicine

Spring--what could be the happiest season of the year is for some of us the one in which we feel most miserable. Everything is in bloom exploding with colors, aromas, life. Little flowers everywhere, even the sides of the freeways are covered with them. But when you suffer from seasonal allergies that sight can be dreadful, announcing a long period of head congestion, itching eyes and runny nose, sometimes coughing and always a terrible feeling of being irritated.

And indeed you are. You might feel angry at your fate but as it has been said many times: diseases don’t fall from the sky. But think about it, this is actually good news because knowing that we realize we have the power to be healthy, to prevent illness and be more in tune with our environment, creating more enjoyment for ourselves and others.

So, what is the reason for this outbreak of symptoms at the end of winter? Well ... one of the reasons is that: winter. Mother Nature moves through the seasons in its own way and we have to move with her. If we go with her flow we don’t get sick. So, in winter Nature goes inside, it retrieves. We do the same in a sense but what that means for us is we spend a lot of time indoors in artificially heated, most of the times overheated rooms with artificial lights, most of the time low quality lights, no ventilation, watching TV or working on the computer, consuming more food and drinking less water. This kind of life style is not the best for our immune system.

Your immune system is a set of mechanisms that not only shields the body from the environment but also maintains a harmonious relationship with it. When it is strong and alive that is, but we can to do the right things in order to keep it that way, and if it’s not strong and healthy we have to know that we can restore it.

Traditional Chinese Medicine works very well in both restoring the health of the immune system and keeping it strong to prevent illness. Acupuncture and Chinese herbs, the main treatment modalities of Traditional Chinese Medicine, work in combination to alleviate symptoms once they are already in place and making you miserable. Acupuncture breaks all that stagnation you feel in your nose, eyes and ears by allowing a better flow of the body fluids, bringing down inflammation, cooling the affected tissues and opening up all the head cavities. The right herb formula on the other hand, can give the body the right nutrition and ingredients to facilitate that process.

This immediate although temporary relief is very important because it sends the whole body the message that things are now in order, and an injection of the much needed oxygen enlivens the whole body again. In conjunction, acupuncture treatments, no matter what the chief complaint is, always harmonize the nervous system and allow for a deep relaxation which we know is the main tool to allow the body to function naturally and repair tissues, organs and functions.

After this initial relief has been accomplished, acupuncture and herbs have a deeper and more lasting purpose: to turn the immune system into an invincible shield against pollen, cold, heat, dryness, damp, toxicity. It’s important to know, though, that to get to this point the practitioner needs the undying commitment and discipline of the patient, since is not without the transformation of their life style that this much desired change will take place.

On the bright side we have to remember that there is an added benefit, a “side effect”, to these treatments and that is that the whole body will be harmonized and strengthened, which in turn prevents illness and promotes happiness.

This is true health insurance. And the only one you need.

Monica Campins L.Ac.
www.meridianholisticcenter.com